hello guys n gals...
i have ordered some stuffs like tx, battery, model n bla bla.. from towerhobbies usa. to ahmedabad.
But my parcel got stuck in custom.. I went to custom office n met to superintendent.. He is asking for federal communications commission(fcc) certificate or else conformity certificate.. he said that if i dont bring that he is going to detain my parcel n will destroy it..
Guys plz tell me whr can i get this certificates or else tell me what can i do in this situation to get my parcel.
product details-
futaba tx
hobbico battery
thundertiger engine
some other small stuffs..

plz plz help me

Thank You

i guess they want the FCC certificate for the tx... check this online and you might get it for the model you own.. confirmity certificates is a hassle as you might have to get some testing certificates / reports for the tx which am not sure you can get it unless you talk to the manufacturer or the dealer..
again not sure why they are asking the FCC as in INdia the process is quite different (ETA - electronic type approval from the wireless planning comission WPC which is another challenge)... (i would recommend that you try to reason it out with them with talks and if this might not work then try to ........ if the later does not work too then your package might be in trouble. usually this does not happen but its worth the try

thanx buddy,
I already talked to towerhobbies but they said they can not issue one certificate for me..
Do u have any idea if i talk to futaba directly they can send me certificate.?
and yes they can you give me email and ph# of futaba..?

Which Futaba radio did you get ?  May be we all can look for the exact FCC certificate.

@parthu_777  - try writing the whole situation and mail to , it may help you.

RC Bazar, ETA is Equipment Type Approval and not Electronic Type Approval.

There are some Futuab radios, which are already type approved by WPC and hence should be easy. Unless you let us know what radio model is that people will not be able to help. If it is not WPC approved model then your best bet is to reason out with them, as it is perfectly within thier right to detain the item.

Thank you guys,

i have ordered futaba 6ch pcm tx.
and i am going to mail futaba now.. lets see what happens..

plz plz find me a fcc

what's the model number ? It would be something like T6X or similar

Lucky me,purchased same type radio set from tower..Paid custom duty but no issues like this certificate..Have u ordered any ARF with tat parcel?

what if you show a FCC certificate of some other electronic equipment with the type/model numbers forged??.. I wonder if the customs would take the extra effort to verify the authenticity of the certificate. Anyway, your item will be confiscated if you do not provide a certificate so its just a frantic attempt to save it. BTW, I do not advocate forgery... think it of like "ethical hacking".

-Ismail

AFAIK, FCC has nothing to do with India and vice versa. This is just plain harassment by the custom authority. Usually for - you know what!

Quote from: flyingboxcar on April 28, 2011, 01:13:22 PM
RC Bazar, ETA is Equipment Type Approval and not Electronic Type Approval.

stand corrected it is equipment type.. should have know it better as i have recd them from the wpc myself...  parthu_777, you can google and get the fcc for the radio if it helps ...

There are some exposed one, like this one for a T6 2.4Ghz : http://sgravit.free.fr/spektrum/Futaba-FFC-Test-labo.pdf

Fact is that the license being sought is about 1/6th the size of an A4 paper !

If you know the FCC-ID for your model, you can see the license here :

http://www.fcc.gov/oet/ea/fccid/

The grantee code for Futaba is "AZP" (which is also the first 3 letters of the FFC-ID).  You can search just by grantee code, but that brings up a huge list.

PS: Strange that you have so far not mentioned which MODEL EXACTLY are you getting ?

I agree with Sushil. However, in most other countries the customs will not allow any equipment without proper radio emmisions certificate. I am in electronics industry for quite sometime and I had just one incident of FCC violation. That was in an airport and its was spotted as our equipment interfered with a 900MHz GSM base band. So, as long as there is not interference you should be fine. Just don't fly near any military comms or airports.. These guys have some highend scanners... If they are after your freq then for sure you will be caught.

Quote from: sushil_anand on April 28, 2011, 02:41:29 PM
AFAIK, FCC has nothing to do with India and vice versa.

From what I remember, existing FCC certification/testing documents are one of the items WPC requires for ETA.  I think Sai can elaborate.

I have said that many times and will say that again, unless your radio is type approved and is on 2.4 GHz band it is not legal and customs have all the authroty to impound your equipment, irrespective of FCC status.
All and any other radio sets (except the ones made earlier by Futaba on 27 MHz AM band) are illegal in the country.
I would also not suggest to forge anything. One can  be smart but do not underestimate the smartness of others, so if you get caught, you run a far greater risk than just loosing money on the radio.

Your best bet is to tell us what model is the equipment so that some one who knows can tell you whether it is TA or not. And if it is you are cleared. If not just request that guy, reason with him, plead with him and next time buy your radios in India or get through someone coming in.    

Quote from: parthu_777 on April 28, 2011, 09:42:14 AM
he said that if i dont bring that he is going to detain my parcel n will destroy it..

One thing that i am sure of is that they can not destroy ur parcel. get a copy of WPC Gazette ( 2.4 GHz)_Outdoor.
if somehow u are not able to get u parcel released then simply write a letter to them and pay return shipping fees. they will send the parcel to return address i.e. towerhobbies.

They can impound and destroy articles impounded. That is in the books!! And then sir WPC does not publish Gazette/s. The 2.4 GHz outdoor notification published at GoI Gazette would be of no help unless the equipment being brought in the coutry has ETA issued by WPC. At the cost of repetition will say again, try and convince the customs officer in most polite and in a way that boosts his ego and self esteem, you may just get through without any documentation.

Hi,
    First thing first, Please do not fall in any confusion.
If the radio is 2.4 ghz which I presume is, there's no problem.
Thousands of cord less phones works on that band in India.
FCC rules does not apply in India.

Did you receive any memo or notice from customs, if yes, find the reason mentioned in memo or notice and reply, for that.
If not do not worry, wait for the written communication.

And most importantly, if you are a student, take guidance from some body who know some thing about customs, or your elders. If you are not a student still I will suggest to take guidance from a person who knows about customs.

All the Best
AkshayB

Its strange.... person can carry Radio with him and but cant order online ? 

because their is no inward entry of items which person carry, while the parcels have to.. also even if you carry then also luck matters but more in favor

Quote from: Akshayb on April 28, 2011, 07:08:09 PM
FCC rules does not apply in India.

To be very clear, we are not talking about FCC "rules".  The "testing and certification process" (like ETA here) that FCC carries out is pretty rigorous and is valued in many countries, and that includes our own WPC from what I gathered.

Even if it is 2.4 GHz you would still need ETA, the millions of cordless phones being sold in India would be ETA before being brought in bulk and sold locally.
As rightly pointed out by Anwar above and others earlier, FCC certification is just one component for obtaining ETA.

While carrying in person, the customs guy are looking for big fish, majority of us while carrying it in our baggage and walking through the green channel are small fry. The guy standing at the Green channels are seasoned ones who know what to look for. But still there are some who outsmart them or pass through in connivance. Next time while bringing in, try making a declaration that you are bringing in a radio control equipment and see how much fun you have with the official machinery.  

Again,
Most of the times people make the mistake of making a personal visit without being called for and end up in this trap. You do not need to go to customs office unless personal presence has been asked for. If you get a call memo notice, just send them the documents they have asked for through speed post/Registered letter (even now you do not need to go there) and 99.99% times the items would be released with duty. In our eagerness to get our hands on the package we indicate to them that we need it badly and this is what these people take advantage of.
Trust me I regularly get, small and large items (as large as USPS allows to be shipped) and I never had any issues, only precaution I take is I do not order direct anything which has Radio.
The first time I imported direct in Bangalore, I did the same mistake and I was asked by the official what the itmes were for, and I told them these were spares for model airplane, the guy said these require permission from DGCA etc etc and showed me the section of HS code pertaining to full scale and walked away. I took the HS code manual and opened up the correct classification code, and patiently waited for him to return after his tea. On return I explained to him these were for small sized airplane models I build, and showed him the correct classification. His next question was if it was for office use (since I was in HAL uniform and the package was addressed to HAL address) and he was informed it was personal. He asked me to write a declaration and sent me off, next day the postman delivered the package with some duty. I made a few visits to Chennai PAD at FPO as well in initial days but since then whenever asked for documents I just send them through post and wait    
Hope this helps

Its somewhat confusing that when a RC Radio is launched in teh market the MFG. co takes care for all the required certification like FCC. If we can go thru FFC details, we can get the report for RF test carried out also copy of Certificate stating that it is FCC approved.

Just like to know "What is need for Type Approval by WPC ?"

The same Radio's were used accross the world by RC Guys.